Elder Statesman Leveille Voted Team USA Captain

Attackman Kevin Leveille will
serve as Team USA captain during his first world championship
apperance. (Scott McCall)

DENVER – He's the elder statesman, yet a
first-time world championship participant, and now Team USA
captain.

Attackman Kevin Leveille, Major League Lacrosse's all-time
leading goal scorer who was a Team USA alternate in 2010, was voted
solo captain of the U.S. men's national team on Tuesday night in
Colorado Springs, Colo., where the group is finishing off a
four-day training camp at the Air Force Academy ahead of the
Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship,
which begins Thursday.

Head coach Richie Meade informed the team at the end of a
Tuesday morning practice session at Air Force that the group would
vote on captains later in the evening, and that he preferred a solo
captain elected with two-thirds majority vote, but would be open to
having more than one captain if the team preferred it.

That didn't happen, and the nod went to Leveille, the
34-year-old who, by two months over defenseman Lee Zink, is the
oldest member of Team USA. One of the game's all-time great
finishers, Leveille has been in the U.S. mix before, in the running
to make every team since 2002, and even traveling with the last
Team USA group to Manchester in 2010, where his brother Mike,
helped the team win gold.

There was a bit of foreshadowing of the news Monday night during
the team's visit to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado
Springs. For a symbolic torch lighting ceremony, an Olympic
facility official asked the team captain to do the honors. A
captain had not yet been named yet, but a few teammates suggested
Leveille, who currently plays for MLL's Rochester Rattlers, to do
it.

"A couple people threw my name out and no one else was going, so
I kind of just ran with it," Leveille said. "It's been a great
start to the week for us. Being together as a group and feeling it
grow organicaly. It's a really smart and advanced group. It's been
a lot of fun so far."

Team USA will hold a short practice session Wednesday morning
before heading to Denver ahead of Thursday night's opening ceremony
and first game against Canada at 9 p.m. ET at Dick's Sporting Goods
Park in Commerce City, Colo. The game will air live on ESPN2 and
LaxMagazine.com will have live and post-game coverage.